Ragtime Music - History and Influences

Ragtime sprung up as a music form towards the end of the 19th century, and this was one of a number of forms which had their roots in this time period. This increasing diversity resulted from the fusion of African and European musical ideas in the Southern States of the U.S. It wasn't so much a deliberate crafting by music scholars, but more the result of experimentation and informal learning by example, often by self-taught musicians who played in streets and bars. This informal folk music became formalised into Ragtime by composers like Harvey and Joplin who played the music to large audiences and published it so that its popularity was able to spread.

Ragtime was played usually on a solo piano, an instrument which most honkytonk bars and saloons possessed. The word Ragtime means "syncopated time", the main characteristic of these pieces being the Right Hand playing a syncopated tune while the Left Hand plays a simple regular line of alternating bass notes and simple chords, often called a "two-step" and not unlike the "Alberti Bass" used in classical music by the likes of Mozart and Haydn. Despite the fact that the Right Hand syncopations were far in excess of anything produced in classical music, the structure of these pieces was nevertheless quite strict in a classical sense. They consisted of a number of contrasting 16 bar sections (usually in 2/4 time) with repetitions and returns to previous sections or a "Da Capo" (return to the begining). This structure is very similar to various march or dance forms or the classical Rondo. Towards the end of each section or phrase there might be rising bass lines, changing harmonies or accidentals to give colour and emphasis to the cadences (phrase endings).

Ben R. Harvey was one of the first practitioners to bring ragtime to the Vaudeville shows in New York. An all round entertainer, he did much to popularise ragtime allowing it to spread beyond its humble beginings. He was closely followed by Scott Joplin, who with the publication of the Maple Leaf Rag had the equivalent of a top ten hit. It's easy to see why this style became popular. The tunes and rhythm are "catchy" and foot-tapping, the syncopations lively and with humour (often poking fun at serious or pretentious music), and anyone with a piano could participate. Joplin continued to lead this new art form producing a large number of piano rags, cakewalks and other similar forms, and even demonstrating that ragtime could be adapted with different time signatures including the 3/4 Waltz time. Although many piano rags are often played fast, Joplin frequently indicated on many of his rags that they should be played quite slow, and the piano rolls which he created and left for posterity demonstrated the desired slow tempo.

Ragtime was an influence on songwriters of the day, who wrote songs called rags although they were only loosely based on the conventions of genuine ragtime. Among those songwriters was Irving Berlin who wrote "Alexander's Ragtime Band" and "Everybody's Doing It" among many other songs. Thus it is not an exaggeration to say that ragtime has had an impact on the development of modern song-writing. In the same way that Jazz was later to influence classical composers like Ravel, Ragtime also had an influence on some classical composers. One of those was Claude Debussy who wrote a number of piano pieces in this style, including the Golliwog's Cakewalk.

Ragtime pioneers:

We list just a few of the better known ragtime exponents, and some of their works.

• Ben R. Harvey - "Mister Johnston, Turn Me Loose"
• James Scott (1885-1938) - "Kansas City Rag", "Frog Legs Rag" and "Peace and Plenty Rag"
• Joseph F. Lamb (1887 - 1960) - "Bohemia" and "Ragtime Nightingale"
• Arthur Marshall - "The Pippin" and Swipesy Cakewalk (with Scott Joplin)
• Scott Hayden (1882-1915) - collaborated with Scott Joplin on "Sunflower Slow Drag", "Felicity Rag" and "Kismet Rag"
• George Botsford (1874-1949) - "Black & White Rag", as used in the UK snooker TV programme "Pot Black"
• Scott Joplin (1868-1917) - composer of:
• The Chysanthemum, an Afro-American Intermezzo
• Swipesy Cakewalk (with Arthur Marshall)
• Solace, a Mexican serenade
• The Entertainer
• The Easy Winners
• Maple Leaf Rag
• Elite Syncopations
• Bethena: A Concert Waltz

It's fair to say that some piano rags are a little bit difficult to play, particularly for young players with small fingers. But much ragtime has been arranged into simpler versions so that even the less-experienced pianist can have a go. We can suggest these albums as suitable starting points:

• 18 rags in easier versions from the US-based SheetMusicPlus
• It's Easy to play Ragtime - 14 simple versions from the UK-based MusicRoom

Ragtime was less popular by the 1920s by which time Jazz was making an impression, which unlike ragtime had an emphasis on improvisation. There was something of a revival of the fortunes of ragtime music when Marvin Hamlisch used Joplin's music extensively in the soundtrack to the movie The Sting, including the main theme The Entertainer and Solace. More recently Bethena: A Concert Waltz was used on the soundtrack to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.